The Best of Intentions
by Shahrezad1
Summary: Gerda and Kristoff have a discussion regarding his connection to two specific young ladies. Chapter 2: Anna has her own conversation with Master Kai.
1. Chapter 1

**The Best of Intentions**

By Shahrezad1

Summary: Gerda and Kristoff have a discussion regarding his connection to two specific young ladies.

Disclaimer: I don't own either character involved in this, nor even the truth of the matter—that Gerda and Kai are a reference to the story, "The Snow Queen," by Hans Christian Andersen.

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Fear pumping through his veins, the reindeer-friendly ice-harvester slipped and slid along the finely waxed floor, coming to a stop just barely out of sight of the hallway. He could hear the thundering of twenty or so feet, the shouts and calls of, "here, he's over here!" And then with a finally feeling of mounting horror at the creaking of an open door, he opted to duck into the door he had been planted against rather than face the growing hoard.

It looked like all the others, the dark burgundy and light forest green of the royal family's colors decorated simply with a flowering motif, and once he was inside, crouching before the keyhole, all that he cared about was that the blurred figures kept going and _left him alone_.

"Not that I mind visitors usually, but this really isn't the time."

The comment, spoken simply and kindly, left him whirling around. And as he was already mid-crouch, the move almost tumbled him to the ground, all thick feet and gangly limbs. Catching himself on the thick, braided rug he huffed his blonde hair out of his face to glance up and up and up…

Until he was left gaping at one of the palace's head's of staff—Gerda to be exact. She gazed down at him over the top of a heavy wooden desk, a small vase of cheerful flowers in one corner and a tidy pile of paperwork in the other, ready to be worked on. The ink and quill set, current piece of parchment in use, and small container of sand all indicated that she was hard at work conquering the stack—a task he had just interrupted.

Thankfully she'd always been kind to him, so despite his ungainly appearance a part of him softened and relaxed, breathing for the first time in over an hour.

"Sorry, um, I just. Ah," he breathed out a huff of self-deprecating laughter, "_Sorry._ I was just escaping a herd of tailors trying to stuff me into a peacock suit."

The corner of her mouth tilted higher up, "you mean that herd which I sicced on you in an effort at domesticating the wild man out of you?"

He had nothing to say at that, gaping some more, this time with cold trepidation dripping down into his gut. But she motioned him up regardless, gesturing that he take a seat.

"It's fine. I understand that they make for a rather daunting group, especially en masse. Although I do believe that they would be rather less determined if you were a little less skilled at escaping," the gentle tease was like a poke to his gut, making him laugh. In response he finally took the offered armchair, hoping that, if anything, the chair back would block any view of him from the door.

The minutes passed by, he in silent observation of the world outside her expansive window and she scratching away. It was almost…peaceful. Excluding the moments when he heard people rushing outside the room. But they never came in, apparently at her wish, and he found himself relaxing for the first time in days.

"Kristoff Bjorgman, you don't mind if I ask, but what is your special relationship with the Queen and Princess?"

The still broken, he found himself quite abruptly spluttering and coughing on his own air.

"Because while Anna seems fond of you, it has been pointed out to me as of late that you have more in common with Queen Elsa. And I would hate for both girls to be hurt due to any confusion on your part," she remarked on this matter calmly, continuing to work at her letter without looking up once.

He gulped in a breath before scooting forward to the edge of his seat, "look, um, Gerda. _Ma'am_, we're all just friends."

"_All_ of you?"

"Elsa and I are friends," he corrected when she shot him a pointed glance, "she's great and all, and what she can do with ice is just _fantastic_, but we're just friends. Odd friends, at that. In fact, I think she likes _Sven_ more than she likes me."

"Elsa is reserved, yes. I understand. In fact, if there's anyone who does, it would be myself," the head housekeeper remarked with slight sadness, "but there's no romantic feelings toward the Queen, then?"

"Glaciers, no! I don't want to be _King!"_ he grimaced at the taste of the word, "and I'm pretty sure that—."

"That Elsa won't be romantically involved with anyone any time soon. You're right about that," she murmured, almost to herself, "unless, of course, one of those ambassadors of hers actually succeeds in his efforts."

He blinked, eyebrow jumping, "what?"

"Never you mind," Gerda responded sweetly, smiling directly at him for the first time the entire conversation, "suffice to say that it takes some time for Elsa to trust anyone. And the only love she's ever felt has been that of familial love, due to circumstances. So finding a romantic attachment—a _true_ romantic attachment—may take some time."

But then the side of her mouth tilted up, "on that note, perhaps you're right. It really is _Anna_ which likes you best."

"W-what? I mean, I…why would you think that Anna, that _she_…?"

He wet his lips, swallowing harshly. When even that trailed off, his shoulders collapsed in like a house of cards.

The blonde rubbed at a stain on his pants, unable to come out even with the aid of earth magic, before finally muttering a quiet, "yeah. Anna…Anna's the one."

Her motherly expression, reminding him of Bulda, had him groaning, removing the hat from his head to run one large hand through his hair, "you know that I'm not really around people much, right?"

"I had heard," she remarked with a slight smile. If unaware at the first, the staff hadn't remained ignorant for long, as Anna and Elsa's 'special guest' quite_ literally_ had all the dinner manners of a troll.

"She," he swallowed a deep breath, wringing the hat in his hands before looking up, "she makes me _believe_ in people. In that some of them are good," light brown eyes widening, the mountain man abruptly realized what he'd said, "I mean, which isn't to say that the people _here_ aren't great—they're fantastic, you know? It's just, I've been burnt before, and they've all been swindlers and thieves and…you know what, I'm going to stop now."

His smile was self-deprecating.

She chuckled lightly, "but Anna is different."

"Yeah," he breathed.

She opened her mouth to explain Anna's…complicated upbringing, but the young man just kept talking.

"I…I don't even know how to describe her," he rubbed bashfully at the back of his neck, "she's…she's like a bright light in a dark room. And she just throws herself into things—sometimes literally."

The dark-haired woman nodded knowingly, eyebrows raised and an ironic little smile on her face as she remembered a bevy of different instances which fell into the description he'd just given. But she let him ramble on—it seemed like he needed the words to come out.

"I mean, have you _seen_ her with the village children? It's like she's never seen them before," Gerda opted not to mention that that was a true enough statement, "and they just love her, because her innocence is just _total_. There was talk in the past about all the royals being stuc—uh, standoffish, but she just loves. _Everyone_."

"Even you?" Gerda prompted pointedly, signing the page with a flourish, "and does she love you?"

"Yeah, we're close, I would…" he sighed heavily, putting his head in his hands so that what came next was a muffled mumble, "I know that I'm her _friend_."

As Gerda kept watching him with thoughtful eyes a thought brought Kristoff up short, back upright and frown evident, trying to figure out her angle. It was something he'd learned at a young age—that people don't regularly 'chew the fat' unless they wanted something from you, especially when there were places to be and work to be done.

As the middle-aged woman began folding up her missive, applying wax and household seal, he finally got up the gumption to inquire, "why are you asking me all this…Ma'am?"

She sighed, and to the ice-harvester it sounded more than a little tired. Then she gave him her abrupt and undivided attention, "Mr. Bjorgman, are you aware of the circumstances behind my Ladies' growing up years?"

"I, uh, yeah. There was…" he swallowed, "I've got nothing. I don't really get out much."

His honesty brought forward a very short smile, "well…after the passing of the King and Queen, ever may they reign, and owing to Queen Elsa's…abilities…it was up to us, the staff, to continue parenting the two young Princesses to adulthood. Before that time, and with a very limited staff I feel," she paused and wet her lips, feeling discomfited her herself at this admission, "my husband Kai and I, we couldn't have children. In many ways myself, and others, feel a vicarious kind of parentage toward both Elsa and Anna."

"So," she continued more strongly, "as a mother of sorts, I would like to know what your intentions are."

He gulped at her, that being the _last_ thing he'd expected (the first being a true "telling off"; that a hermit like him had no purpose hanging around their impressionable young royalty).

She continued despite his startled silence, "both Kai and I have noted that the girls…the young ladies are affectionate toward you. But there's been some recent hesitancy from Anna, as though she dare not get too close."

Yeah, he'd noticed that, too. After gifting Kristoff with his new sled and allowing him to kiss her Anna had abruptly backtracked. Skittering away from his touch and blushing profusely. Her clumsiness had increased, if that was even possible, and if they happened to bump into one another the likelihood of her breaking something had increased three-fold.

Elsa, in contrast, seemed only amused and bemused. Shaking her head and smiling when she thought that no one was looking, over paperwork, mostly, and around endless examples of perfect needlework and still life paintings in progress.

"I wanted to confirm that it was not due to any action on your part," that made his smile drop, until she continued, "of course, we all knew it was unlikely," just as quickly the smile was back, "it has been suggested that her recent actions are due, in part, to Prince Hans' betrayal. Along with Queen Elsa's admonition that Princess Anna not, 'not marry a man she just met.'"

He barked out a laugh at this, eliciting a blink, "sorry. It's just that I kind of said…um, never mind."

But the grin dropped as realization hit. _She was trying to get to know him_. So that he wasn't a man whom she had 'just met.'

"With that in mind, I, and the rest of the staff, have certain expectations for the man she is to marry. We are the only family they have—unconventional as we may be. And we don't deal with intruders lightly."

He had, in fact, noticed. Kristoff cleared his throat, recalling the distinctively fierce looks he'd faced the first time Anna hugged him in public.

"Thus in light of this information," her voice and eyes were steely, "do you intend on hurting either of my girls?"

"_What?_ No!" he gasped out, getting to his feet and pacing slightly, "how could you even _think_ that?"

"I can think a good many things, Mr. Bjorgman. After all, at first glance Prince Hans seemed like a nice young man," her lips twisted in anger, the first real negative emotion he'd seen.

"Look, I have every intention of keeping Anna _and_ Elsa safe."

"And if keeping them safe involves removing yourself from the picture, should that event arise?" the head of staff asked hypothetically, but it was the one question which left him gasping for breath.

"I'd keep them safe…even if it's from me, okay?" he sighed, pulling his hair and staring into the ever-present fire flaring on the other side of the room, "I'd let her go. I mean, I've already done it once, so it shouldn't be," he took a deep, painful breath, "it shouldn't be that dif-diffi—that _hard_ to-to do it again."

The hermit muttered the words, but his expression was crumbling, hands clenching the back of the chair he'd left.

Gerda said nothing for a moment, before raising herself up to stand beside him. With a startled realization Kristoff was made aware that the pointed, imposing woman was actually _shorter_ than him by at least a handsbreadth.

And she was currently beaming up at him, "that's precisely what I wished to hear. Because any one of us would do the same—do whatever it took—to protect them. But!" she pointed out, nearly jabbing him in the eye, "I doubt that it will come to that. After all, it does seem as though Princess Anna is as interested in your presence as you are in hers."

"Whu—um, how? Do you know, I mean?"

Her smile was fond, "Anna is only unbalanced when she's uncertain of herself and nervous. Which is to say, she's always been clumsy," a huff of laughter followed that admission, "but she's developed quick reflexes, so everything tends to survive—give or take. The fact that she's breaking things again is a _good_ sign, despite the damage. It means that she's paying attention to something _other than_ her environment."

He gaped, jaw dropping and eyebrows leaping skyward. Which eventually morphed into a bemused smile as Gerda gave him one last parting glance.

"That, and she recently asked me if there were any rules against royalty courting common folk," she paused, "there aren't, by the way."

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AN:

This appeared like a bolt out of the blue, let me tell you. XD As a few of you may be aware, I've recently gotten on a HP Neville Longbottom/Hannah Abbott kick. Yet this whole conversation popped up in a single sitting, started by the thought of:

"Sure, Kristoff loves ice, but just because he loves ice and thinks that Elsa's talents are fantastic, doesn't mean that she's the right girl for him." Similarly, just because I love art doesn't mean that I should marry another artist—talk about disaster in the making! D:

Then that bit spiraled into an entire conversation, and I just knew that I wanted it to be with Gerda, the original main character of Hans Christian Andersen's, "The Snow Queen." She's just…really good at getting things done and getting straight to the point. XD *laughs*

Plus it was really, really fun just making Kristoff all flustered and embarrassed. Good times. :3

Anyway, I hope that you enjoyed it all. :)


	2. Chapter 2

**The Best of Intentions**

By Shahrezad1

Summary: Gerda and Kristoff have a discussion regarding his connection to two specific young ladies. Chapter 2: Anna has her own conversation with Master Kai.

Disclaimer: I don't own either character involved in this, nor even the truth of the matter—that Gerda and Kai are a reference to the story, "The Snow Queen," by Hans Christian Andersen.

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Chapter 2

"Princess Anna! To what do I have the pleasure?"

The question, open and honest, pulled her from the doorway, hands clutching the frame as she carefully peeked around the corner with wide eyes. But Kai had always been that way: approachable and friendly, and willing to listen to her chatter, even when she was really saying nothing at all—just needing to hear herself think. To hash through things, and let out some steam and frustration as her nerves slowly climbed the walls.

That aside, he was, first and foremost, her friend, and that's why she'd come to him.

Of course, she _could_ have gone to Gerda but, well, Anna just felt like she was bothering her all the time, so, really, this was the best course of action. And the younger princess could have spoken with Elsa, she supposed, but, really, it seemed that every time (meaning that one time) she brought up boys or relationships or, you know, well, marriage, she just seemed to get upset. Which wasn't to say that Elsa would get upset about, you know, this boy, but it was really best not to…push her luck?

Yep, that was it. Besides, she could always talk to Elsa about it later…right? It wasn't as though she going to hide the situation from her sister or anything. But the question could 'keep' until she was more sure.

Plus Kai had always been a good sounding board, which is why she'd gone to him in the first place.

Princess Anna carefully removed herself from the doorway, striding nonchalantly into the wide kitchen with a feigned sort of confidence.

"Evening, Kai," she greeted him brightly, the second Head of Staff surrounded by several small piles of paper, numbers and little check marks ticked all along them, and a tall mug of something steaming. Probably hot chocolate, she imagined—it was his beverage of choice. The fact that it was also hers made for a good excuse to come visit.

"I'm just, you know, grabbing something to drink."

The whole situation made for a rather relaxed atmosphere, actually.

Not that, well, he placed himself in the kitchen for a reason or anything. Okay, well, maybe he did. Something about the other members of staff felt a little more comfortable talking to him in "neutral territory," so to speak.

After all, Gerda's office could be _pretty _intimidating. Not that, well, _she _was intimidating. Except for those times Anna when broke something, not that that had happened all that…all that often.

_Anyway._

The strawberry blonde whistled slightly as she sauntered over to a very specific cupboard and pulled out a large bowl of cook's chocolate shavings, one of their most important imports by Anna's estimation. Then there was the mug, palace-issue, and a small pan to be collected. Anna found the milk surrounded by ice—courtesy of the official Arendelle Ice Master and Deliverer—in the pantry. Then she set about making her concoction at the nearest stove, nearly stumbling on the rug in the process.

Most of the palace was made of wood, mostly for its versatility in handling the switch from hot to cold to hot again. Which was, well, even more important now than ever. But the foundation was outright _stone_, with the side effect being that stone was _cold_. Which was, you know, not so bad because it was covered by rugs, but rugs were kind of _the bane of her existence_.

Despite this she'd learned to live with them. So the professional klutz didn't drop anything on the way over, and then soon enough her chocolate was mixed and melted and poured into her cup, a frothy concoction of sugar and delight just waiting to be enjoyed. Yeah, sure she'd left a mess in the sink, but she figured that she would clean that up afterward because right now she kind of needed to talk to Kai and…

Yeah.

Tucking herself in over the bench, and only knocking the long trestle table with her knees once—just once—the Princess eyed the accounts her father's most trusted manservant was poring over. They kind of looked boring to her, all squiggles and little notations that didn't make any sense at all. I mean, sure, they were mostly made up of numbers and she supposed that that was important—given how she had a general idea of how money went. Something about supply and demand?—but it seemed pretty uninteresting to her.

Kai seemed pretty into it, though.

Anna watched him watch his papers for several minutes more, her quiet little sips soon becoming impatient little slurps. His wide mouth twitched into something that may have been a smile until finally, _finally_, he set down his quill and capped the bottle of ink sitting beside him. Then clasped his hands together and waited expectantly, eyebrows up and eyes half-lidded.

"What's that?" was her first question, gesturing toward the piles of scrollwork.

He looked down at the sheets once before his lips lifted a little more on the one side, "it's a list of all the expenses we accrued during Queen Elsa's coronation."

"Oh. So…you mean like how much food cost and our new dresses?"

"Among other things," he admitted, "there is also the ships which were destroyed during the final…altercation."

They—meaning the village and staff—had taken to calling the "showdown" (as Anna thought of it) a number of things. 'Altercation,' for one. That phrase was typically used by those more 'politic' (Elsa's word) of the staff. Those who had known them longest, really, and had stuck around when her parents sent everyone else away.

The newcomers, children of all the old staff, really, called it 'The Ice Blast,' as that's when the storm went away. And the villagers called it 'The Ice Battle.' Although she wasn't quite sure if it really was a battle, 'cause, well, there had really only been a few of them involved, not a whole army. And that would mean that Elsa was the one battling, when really H-H-that Jerkface Prince was the one who had been 'attacking'—her sister had been all in self-defense. So it was kind of an inaccurate description, truth be told.

So 'Altercation' wasn't so bad, she guessed. Better than 'Ice Duel' or something, because a duel generally meant that both individuals had weapons and not that the one tried to stab the other in the back.

"And then there is restitution to be made for the visiting dignitaries, who lost both time and dealt with emotional hardship during the period of our Queen's…inactivity."

That was another word they liked to throw around. It wasn't 'Breakdown' or even that she'd 'Found Herself'—which was her and Kristoff's word for it, having seen the _gorgeous_ ice palace Elsa made. Which was, you know, still up there on the mountain, needing a few repairs. A really great place to get away from it all, Anna had found, Marshmallow aside. No, 'Inactivity,' was the word of choice, as though Elsa had just gone limp like some sort of doll.

But inactivity also meant that she hadn't been _actively_ freezing anyone out—it had just been an accident. Like she'd stepped out for a minute, or something.

Anna smiled, "well, at least we weeded out the bad ones. That's some good which came of it, right?"

"True," Kai murmured with some irony, "however, both Weselton and the Southern Isles were main trade partners with Arendelle. Filling those gaps will be a rather difficult procedure. Especially as the Southern Isles were our main source of _chocolate_."

Face dropping in horror, she gaped at the red-haired man.

Until his eyes crinkled down at her.

Anna huffed, chuckling, then lightly smacked his arm, "quit pulling my leg. I'm pretty sure it's Spain that we get it from."

"Yes, we do receive much of it from the Spanish monks," he nodded, a pleased smile on his face for her having remembered at least one tidbit from her lessons, "that aside, we have lost many products by way of recent events."

The young woman slurped her beverage in newfound appreciation, wiping her mouth on her sleeve and ignoring Kai's sigh of exasperation.

"Well, why don't we just increase trade with the people that _weren't_ freaked out? Or, you know, backstabbing warmongers."

She was awfully proud of that phrase, having read it in a book somewhere. Not that she could remember which book—the palace library was kind of big, and when you lived a life of absolute boredom, she could pretty much say with some confidence that she'd read most of the books in the building.

The reappearance of all those facts she'd read, however, was all dependent on _them_. So it's was a random access kind of memorization.

"Such as?" he prompted with patient humor.

"Well, there's Corona, right?" she waved with one hand, "that new Princess—the missing one, I think? Her name had something to do with vegetables, although why someone would want to be named after vegetables—," the head steward coughed, pointedly, "um, anyway, it sounds like she's pretty familiar with how magic works. Like, she doesn't seem to be—" 'afraid' was the right word here, but Anna was a little leery of using it, so, "—worried about it so much. Maybe we could work out some stuff with them?"

Kai blinked, expressing unchanging, and Anna knew in that moment that it really wasn't such a bad idea. Because, he didn't outright say 'no,' or even sort-of humor her or anything.

The Princess beamed and continued, on a roll, "in fact, we should just find all the countries where magic is pretty normal and talk to them. Find some royalty that isn't afraid of it, I think. And then maybe we could, I dunno, find some new friends or teachers, or maybe a boy for Elsa or something. Not that I'm saying that we should go all 'matchmaker-y, matchmaker-y' on her. But, you know what, didn't Mom and Dad have an arranged marriage? I wonder what that would be like? Not that I want one! I've got Kristoff. Uh! I mean, Elsa shouldn't have one, either, but…um, do you think that there's any more chocolate biscuits around here or do you think that Sascha ate them all? He usually does."

Master Kai, head of accounts, import, export, and foreign relations, had gone silent. In that pause he picked up his now-cold cocoa for the first time, seeming to savor the flavor as he tasted his words before speaking.

"We could…open up polite inquiries as to the kingdoms that deal with—and teach—magic," he said slowly and thoughtfully, "the Unseen University, for one. And I _do_ recall a fellow claiming that he aged backwards and that we might need him in the future. From there, perhaps, trust can be built. Nothing so drastic as an arranged marriage by any means," he remarked with some amusement. Anna flushed, "but gaining a general feel for the opinions of other locales while putting forth effort toward placating those which have given us the cold shoulder…so to speak. Plus a measure of insurance that Queen Elsa is in control of her abilities. Surely even_ she_ would appreciate the opportunities for tutelage emerging from this scenario."

He looked down at her with a fatherly sort of pride and then, breaking through her embarrassment, he said quite plainly, "well done, Your Majesty. Those were all very good ideas."

"Wait. What? They were?" she blinked wide eyes. Then the girl coughed, lifting her shoulder as if to say, 'well, yeah, of course. I knew that,' while thumbing her nose, "um, thanks Master Kai."

"You're welcome," he rumbled, back to bemused. But just when she thought that he'd go back to his boring old papers—what were they, _sheet music_ made out of numbers?—he kept his gaze on her.

"Now that I have several of my worries taken care of," Kai nodded his partially bald head at her in appreciation, "what did you wish to talk about, Princess Anna?"

"Whu…ah! Me? Talk about something? Pshaw, I don't want to talk about anything. I mean, that'd be like gossiping, right? Not that I'm gossiping. But, you know, it's like teenagers chatting about boys—which I wouldn't want to do. I mean, not that I've_ ever_ done that before. Except for that one time with Lars the delivery boy. Except that was, you know, just a one-time thing. Ha ha. _Ha_,"

The laugh came out awkward and forced.

"'Cause, well, talking about boys with you, being…a boy—kind of awkward. Wouldn't that be awkward? Like if I wanted to talk about boys with Kristoff. NOT that that would_ ever_ happen. I'm pretty sure that he, um, wouldn't, be interested in hearing me talk about other…yeah. Just…Just as," she cleared her throat, "a _random_ example."

"Princess Anna," Kai began quietly, dropping a heavy hand on her shoulder. She ducked down low in her seat from the weight of it, "do you want to talk about Kristoff?"

"No! _Noooo_, of course not. Why would I want…want to do that?" she asked innocently, hands clasped together. Until the absolute _stillness_ of it all drove her crazy, "okay, so maybe I_ might_ want to talk about Kristoff. I mean, a little bit. Sort of. Would that be okay?"

He gave her a calm, gentle look, and she finally huffed out a horsey puff of air.

"Yeah, okay. Good. I just. Is it _all right_ to like him, I mean? How do you know if it's love?" realizing just what she'd asked, the princess backtracked. Quickly.

"I, well, not that I want to know for_ me_. For, erm, a_ Duchess_ friend of mine."

"Princess," Master Kai pointed out quietly, "the only unmarried Duchess in the realm is seven years old."

The girl winced, "yeah, um, I knew that. Little Margaretha, right?"

"That would be correct."

His affirmation left her staring at the table, finger running around the rim of her mug.

"Princess?"

"Yeah, um, just give me a minute here, okay? I just…you know," the strawberry blonde hugged the half-full delicacy to her chest, "look, I _like_ Kristoff, okay. Is that okay?"

His broad shoulders lifted like boulders, reminding her of the mountain man's family, "if that's what you've decided is best, Miss Anna, it is not my place to question," '…to question royalty' was the unspoken addition.

Slightly irritated, the girl frowned, until he continued with, surprisingly, his own small opinion, "Kristoff is a good man. But what is it that is really bothering you?"

"It's just…okay," taking in a deep breath, she forced herself to speak, "in all those crazy books in the library. Like, those fairy tales and even the history books, it's always a prince, you see? There's just nothing about farmers or clockmakers or innkeepers—it's all princes."

"And no Ice Harvesters?"

"_Yes_. No ice harvesters. And I keep thinking to myself, 'is that bad?' Like, should I wait until a prince really does come along? Plus there was this story about this frog really being a prince, and I couldn't help thinking, you know, 'does this mean I have to go through a whole bunch of frogs before I get to that point?' Which is a pretty good question, when you think about it. Why put myself through that kind of torture? Especially when, you know I could maybe…be happy without a prince?"

The sentence came out in a squeak. Until, that is, the tiny slip of a girl straightened in her seat, thumping her drink back down, "for that matter, would that be 'settling?' Because I was listening to Silje, the baker's daughter—you know, just getting to know people and stuff, I've got a lot of time to make up for—and she said that if I marry anyone less than an Earl then I would be 'settling.' But I thought that 'settling' was good, you know? Settling down, starting a family…"

She flushed dark enough that, for a moment, her freckles disappeared, "I just, I _really_ like ice harvesters!"

The declaration was made at practically a shout, and realizing that she might actually wake someone up—Cook, maybe? Or Cook's new assistant, a tiny girl with a slight limp and a talent for pudding. Meryl something?—Anna ducked her head.

Pulling in a long breath, as though this conversation was one he'd long been dreading, the ginger-haired manservant tapped his own drink thoughtfully. She couldn't help holding her own breath in wait, blinking when he finally did speak.

"Anna," he intoned, and the utter lack of any title struck her more than anything, cutting off any thought or impulse to interrupt, "if there is anything that I have learned these past few weeks it is that…appearances can be deceiving. I, myself, have only interacted with royalty outside of the Arendellian house," he paused to nod respectfully, "but once or twice. The Queen's coronation ball, mostly, and then…with The Prince."

She ground her teeth together, never mind the fact that no actual name was said.

"And what I have learned is that there are princes who are lower than the mud our pigs wallow in, and there are hermits with more loyalty than kings."

Blinking, a beaming sort of smile tugged from one freckled cheek to another. But Master Kai wasn't quite done yet.

"That being said, whether the late King and Queen approve, ever may they reign, is something that neither of us will know," his soft eyes softened further, a faint sheen appearing in the low lamplight. They both pretended not to notice for a few moments, he swallowing his cold chocolate while she took up a few slurps.

When they both set their empty tankards aside it was with brighter reflection, one redhead to another.

"However," he added with a light lilt of one eyebrow, "while I'm not sure if I am the most qualified person to answer your previous question, there is one thing I've learned about love. Which is that it's created for the purpose of helping others, rather than as something one holds possessively to one's chest. It is a willingness to forsake your own safety or comfort for those that we care about. It is brave and it is solemn and it is child-like and innocent. Unselfish. And if you manage to find these traits in someone that you care about—someone whom you would do the same for—well, then perhaps you've found what you're looking for."

The kitchen was quiet as she chewed on that thought. Until Kai's next words made her look up.

"Please recall that I am no expert on the matter—I can only speak based on what I've experienced," his lips twitched in a tiny smile, and Anna vowed that one day she would discover what that was about; what hidden story he, and Gerda she was guessing, had never told them, "but what I have learned is that love can come from unexpected places. Sometimes it happens in a flash, brilliant and startling. And sometimes it begins as friendship, developing into something more."

"You and Gerda…you were friends first, right?" the question was quiet and tentative. He nodded approvingly.

"We were."

"So…Kristoff is a good guy."

"I believe he is."

"But I should work on getting to know Kristoff first?" she asked, then hastened to make certain, "and what you're saying is that he's off to a good start?"

"Yes. On both accounts."

She beamed up at him, and the man could have sworn that the lamplight flickered as it became brighter, "thanks, Master Kai."

"You're very welcome, Princess Anna."

~/~/~

AN:

So I've decided to continue "The Best of Intentions." Mind you, it's going to only be a three-parter. No more, no less. You can't convince me otherwise. XD Despite all this, writing part two was an awful lot of fun. *grins* Writing from Anna's perspective was quite a change when compared to Kristoff's, especially with its runaway thought processes and stumbling, rambling dialogue and imageries.

Sorry if anyone is of the opinion that this second chapter doesn't quite match the "feel" of the first one. It's my personal opinion that any time you write about a character's perspective, especially in third-person POV, you try to maintain that persona even in the descriptions and the explanations. So that, even though it's not written in first-person, you still pick up a general feel for their personalities. :)

With that in mind, I basically let my chatterbox preadolescent self loose and then edited the things that didn't make any sense afterward (like cleaning up in the wake of Anne of Green Gables). Or perhaps trying to reign in a colt that's full of energy. *laughs*

All in all, I'm rather pleased with the end result. ^^


End file.
